During his visit to China, President Trump raised concerns about the trade deficit between the United States and China as well as China’s trade practices. One longstanding concern in this regard has been technology/intellectual property (IP) transfer requirements in China—an issue the U.S. Trade Representative is currently investigating through a…
On April 18, 2017, President Trump signed the “Presidential Executive Order on Buy American and Hire American.” While there is no immediate impact, the Executive Order (“EO”) sets the stage for executive agencies to perform reviews of compliance with Buy American laws and could potentially lead to changes in how…
“We will follow two simple rules: buy American and hire American.” While world leaders are pondering what these words from President Trump’s Inaugural Address mean for international trade, a different question looms for U.S. Government contractors—what is on the horizon as far as the Buy American Act and similar protectionist…
In a development that may have important implications for companies selling products to the U.S. government, on December 7, 2016, the Court of International Trade (CIT) issued a decision holding that the assembly in the United States of a flashlight using imported components did not qualify as “U.S. origin” under…
Donald Trump’s victory in the 2016 Presidential election put the Republican Party in charge of the White House and Congress for the first time in a decade. President-elect Trump ran as an anti-establishment candidate who departed from many traditional Republican positions and promised bold and in some respects controversial reforms.…
On October 5, the trade ministers of the 12 nations participating in the negotiations announced that they had successfully concluded the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement. Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, United States, and Vietnam are the member countries. There is a…
On June 24, after weeks of legislative wrangling and extensive lobbying by influential interest groups, the U.S. Senate passed the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015, better known as the Trade Promotion Authority (“TPA”) legislation. The House approved identical legislation last week, so the President now can…
This afternoon the House of Representatives approved a rule that extends time for a second vote on Trade Adjustment Assistance legislation which the House failed to pass on Friday. By a vote of 236-189, the House voted to allow for reconsideration of the trade legislation before July 30th. The next…
President Obama and Republican House leaders are regrouping in an effort to put key trade legislation back on track after House Democrats voted against Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) for workers displaced by global trade, a key part of the President’s trade agenda. The development threatens ultimate passage of the Trans-Pacific…
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit last week to the United States was a huge success. Through the visit, President Obama and the Prime Minister affirmed the importance of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) as a trade agreement, but also as a strategic security tool for the Asia Pacific region. The…